Finding Sophie by Imran Mahmood

I'm delighted to share my review of Finding Sophie by Imran Mahmood today for my stop on the blog tour. Many thanks to Tracy Fenton at Compulsive Readers for the invitation and to the publisher for my review copy. 

The Blurb

Sophie King is missing.

Her parents, Harry and Zara, are distraught; for the last seventeen years, they've done everything for their beloved only daughter and now she's gone.

The police have no leads, and Harry and Zara are growing increasingly frantic, although they are both dealing with it in very different ways. Increasingly obsessed with their highly suspicious neighbour who won't open the door or answer any questions, they are both coming to the same conclusion. If they want answers, they're going to have to take the matter into their own hands.

But just how far are they both prepared to go for the love of their daughter?

My Review

Seventeen year old Sophie has been missing for seven weeks and her parents are distraught. According to their police liaison, everything possible is being done but they don't believe that's true. Zara is planning Sophie's birthday celebrations and taking too much diazepam. Harry is being as proactive as he can in looking for their day - quizzing the neighbours and beyond, leaving questionnaires when folk don't answer the door. But both are suspicious of the neighbour who never answers his door.  Very suspicious. As they become more distant from each other their fixation with the neighbour grows, leading to a drastic situation. 

I'm a parent. And if one of my kids went missing I'm pretty sure that I would do anything and everything I possibly could to try to find them. What would be the line I wouldn't cross? Well that's the million dollar question. Because I reckon logic and normal moral standards could easily go  out of the window if my kid was involved. So this was a super interesting premise for me and it's hard to imagine the agony Zara and Harry are going through in this book. 

I had every sympathy with both parents. As mentioned above I have no idea how I would react in that situation. I like to think I'd be proactive, like Harry, but as someone who has struggled with her mental health, I could just as easily be Zara. However, in both cases, some of their actions were dubious at best, risky at worst. But lots of empathy for them and I wanted them to find answers and see justice done. 

As the author is a barrister, I knew there would likely be a significant legal side to the story, and this part was just fascinating! It's hard to say too much without risking spoilers but I learned all about what would happen in a very particular set of circumstances - super interesting! It is all teased out very skilfully as we progress through the book. 

Finding Sophie is a well written, taut thriller with an intelligent plotline and two relatable main characters. It's full of surprises and has a brilliant legal angle. Hard to say any more without spoiling it for you but it's a very enjoyable,  meaty novel which I would happily recommend.

The Author

Imran Mahmood is a practising criminal barrister in England and Wales. His debut novel You Don’t Know Me was chosen by Simon Mayo as a BBC Radio 2 Book Club Choice for 2017 and longlisted for the Theakston Crime Novel of the Year, the CWA Gold Dagger Award, and the Glass Bell Award and was made into a hugely successful BBC1 adaptation in association with Netflix, reaching no.3 in the World and in the UK received a BAFTA nomination for best actor. His second novel I Know What I Saw was chosen as a Sunday Times crime novel of the month and reached no. 2 on the Audible charts. It was also long-listed for both the CWA Gold Dagger Award and Theakstons Crime Novel of the year. His third novel All I Said Was True was also long-listed for the Theakston Old Peculier Crime Novel of the Year 2023

His fourth novel Finding Sophie is to be released in the UK and in the USA in March 2024.

Imran was born and raised in Liverpool but now lives in London with his wife and 2 daughters.